The Palatka daily news. (Palatka, Fla.) 1884-1888, 1887-06-16
A SHREWD DEVICE.

interesting act. AS the writer of fiction,
the volunIinous, untiring, dull, and
middle aged writer of fiction, he claims
our attention; and with the exception,
therefore, of some Immediately following
biographical sentences, this narrative viii
be devoted to him in that capacity
Probably his direst enemy could not
devise any more fatal gift for young,
aspiring and promising author than
sudden succession to half a million OF
money; but in Mt. Hailstone's case, the
unexpected possession of a sum but little
smaller than that mentioned proved no
deadly stumbling block to labor. He was
young mt the time, and aspiring, but not
promising-far from promising-and to
MIN money meant the sole likely or pos
sible means of ever seeing his thoughts in
any other garment than that of his own
handwriting. A magnificent incentive,
therefore was our friends half million.
He loved the trade of novelist, as
no one so indifferently furnished for
1t ever did before, and from the
days of monetary prosperity, all that
which publishers had refused to publish,
all that which editors had shuddered at,
appeared in what form the author pleased
and he chose the most handsome form
at his own expense. Hailstone rubbed
bindings with all the most popular wares
in the market. Such experience as money
could buy Felix bought. He interested
himself in literary companies, took sub
editorships on decaying journals, lost
large sums, and, finally, himself floated
an illustrated monthly magazine after
scheme of his own evolution. The word
''fioat," however, as having more than a
suggestion of buoyancy or specific light
ness about it, must be deemed ill-chosen
when treating of any such periodical as
1.-THE Torch" The first number of this
trifie would have anchored the Great
Eastern in a gale. Hailstone himself
contributed two-thir,s of the initial vent
ure, which, thus handicapped, splut-
tered to the extent of "a three-copy circu-
lation and expired.
The ordinary railway novel-with n
sensational picture of somebody doing
nothing ON the outside--was, for a period
of ten years, our authors main method of
keeping himself before the public, and
his next undertaking of Importance
appears to have been q society journal.
Engaging for this a literary man who
understood the distribution of prize
watches by coupon. the value of puzzles,
competitions, and SO forth matters
which, in these days when everybody
reads, are essential to the existence of a
new social weekly-Mr. Hailstone pro-
duced, in winter time, on paper, well
calculated to light fires, his periodical.
1t ran till the weather grew warmer, and
Felix always reckoned the effort among
his successes.
With bound we now come to the days
Of the ''Shocker''-the SHILLING shOcker.r
Our author gloried in this new departure.
He burst upon the public with flashes of
lightning on his covers; he tempted the
elect with insidious titles and enigmatical
pictures; he crept into mems hearts by
printing every cilapter of his lucubrations
on paper of n different color; he displayed,
in fine, more ingenuity than his best
friends had ever credited him with; and
some weat so far as to foretell that he
might yet gain the public ear.
In justice to Mr.. Halstone we may here
say, once and for all, that he had
admirers, though unfortunately of a class
who discounted their approval and
admiration. He was a man of wealth, be
il remembered, and. as such, gave a vast
deal of occupation to that large cOmmun-
ity of feeble folks who spend their time in
devising methods for creeping to rich mems
pockets. These people not only found good
and much of moral instruction in Felix's
works, but generally took the liberty of
mentioning il, together with other irrel-
evant facts. Some of his readers had
large families Hailstone discovered; some,
only one arm; some, a stroke; one wrote
with the water he washed in because ink
could not BIC purchased without money;
one admirer was not far from death,
another from starving. Our authors
writing on an empty stomach, by the by,
must, humanely speaking, have meant
years Off mans life
Mr.. Iiailstone, however, was blessed
with common sense i'll large quantities, q
fact accounting in some measure, posi-
bly,, for his lack of success i'll fiction. He
perfectly well knew that his books were
not largely read, and determined to break
new ground and tempt fortune with some
thing historical. a novel the book should
be in name, and in name only, he de-
cided. People might read the coming vol
ume for plot if they chose; but, as a
teacher. rs u crystaliZed epitome of q by
gone era, the book must live; that Mr..
Hailstone was determined. Condescend-
ing 10 no casuistical questions as to what
reall. does or does not constitute the past,
Felix boldly put the matter beyond all
dispute and laid his plot in the year 1870.
Then he read up the period, let his pen
dry, and lived, for the space of
month, among books other than his
own. After which course of study, order
ing in ink another man might order in
table ale, the author wrote twelve hours
six days week, and corrected for the
press upon the seventh.
With the production OF this ponderous
Felix to the most important period of his
whole >fe: that in which the ''HailstOne
Con petition" first entered his mind, and
from which this narrative properly has it's
bsing
Mr.. Hailstone was 80 years of age and
had written hard upon twice that number
of novels, when one day, in his morning
newspaper, he Glanced To see an adver-
tisement, of which the substance was
follows:
''rhree prizes of small value were offered
for the longest lists of characters from the
fiction of Thackeray. What measure Of
success attended this speculation is not
generally known; but he or she who de-
vised this competition has, without ques-
ton, very considerable claim ON Mr..
Hailstonc, and may, indeed, long since
have pushed it,"
Felix read and ruminated; then a great
thought spread its light over his face, and
terrific possibilities entered his mind. Adj
vertsements both bold and subtle he had
tried and tried again, but nothine, calcu-
lated to carry his name all over the world,
and certainly nothing in the slightest de-
gree likely to raise universal interest in his
writings. Now, however, both these much
desired consummations appeared within
measurable distance of fulfillment. Sub
stitute, ii you please, Mr.. Hailstone's
name for that of the great novelist already
mentioned, enormously increase the sums
of money to be offered prizes, and You
see our friends scheme in a nutshell
Now, Thackeray has n mere trifle of
some 1900 characters in his works of
fiction, but this number sinks into moth
ingness when compared with Hailstone's
creations. From the moment when, at
years of age, his youthful mind satur-
ated I'm nursery fable, little Felix. with
much linking of fingers. scrawled some
thing which "a proud father caused to be
printed verbatim, to the days we now
treat of, the writer's Pigments had numer-